The well-off girls who go shoplifting with a designer 'shopping list'

On the rise: The number of girls aged ten to 13 cautioned for shoplifting has increased more than three-fold since 1997

Young girls are fuelling record levels of shoplifting and the majority are from middle-class backgrounds, an expert warned last night.

The number of girls aged ten to 13 cautioned for shoplifting has increased more than three-fold since 1997 – to more than 3,000 – according to official figures.

And the number of girls aged 14 to 16 has more than doubled in the same period, to more than 7,000.

Experts say that two-thirds of these girls are now from affluent families, compared with one third in 2005.

Meanwhile, the number of boys caught shoplifting has dropped. The value of goods stolen from shops hit a record high last year of £137million, according to the British Retail Consortium. The average value of goods per incident was up to £70, from £45 the previous year.

Experts believe this is due to a surge in affluent young female shoplifters with costly designer items on their ‘shopping list’. They have warned that their actions could blight future careers as cautions can be revealed during a criminal records check.

Crisis Counselling for Alleged Shoplifters has been inundated with calls from worried parents of girls.

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Founder Harry Kauffer said: ‘A typical shoplifter used to be a drug addict. ‘Now it’s girls from well-off families. Many of these are doing it for kicks.

‘Today’s youngsters are often spoilt and arrogant and think they can get away with anything. Also, along with a surge in divorces, many do it as a cry for attention.

‘And young girls are now more materialistic. They want to emulate celebrities and wear fashionable clothes and make-up. Few parents give enough pocket money to afford such things.’

Home Office figures show 3,205 girls aged ten to 13 were cautioned for shoplifting in 2009 compared with 1,775 boys of the same age.

In 1997 only 912 girls from this age bracket were cautioned compared to 2,557 boys. And whereas the number of boys aged 14 to 16 cautioned for shoplifting fell from 5,882 in 1997 to 4,536 in 2009, it increased in girls from 3,215 to 7,678.